June is Pride Month and pride events are taking place in Kingston and Brockville this weekend.
Wearing bright rainbow colours, sporting smiles and carrying flags, pride marchers moved through the streets of Brockville Saturday.
The event marks the end of several days of Pride events in the city.
Laura Webb, who is walking in the parade, says the parade spreads a positive message for the LGBTQ2S+ community.
“That we are enough, that we are important, that we are loved, and that we are here,” she explains. “We want to welcome everybody.”
This is Brockville Pride’s 11th year. It began as a simple walk, and the following year grew to an organized parade route. Organizer Ryan Northrup say it’s the largest yet with more people signing up to walk, and hundreds more coming out to line the streets.
“Which is fantastic,” explains Northrup. “Our local community needs this kind of thing to happen, because there’s still lots of people out there who can’t be who they are and don’t live in a great community like we do.”
For Tara Gillette, bringing her two year old is about supporting future generations in the LGBTQ2S+ community.
“I think it’s important to teach him about love, and teach him about equality,” she explains.
In Kingston, a walk/run in the city’s east end is kicking off seven days of the Pride festival.
Ian Burns says fundraising at events like these will partially go towards providing financial support to Trans and Indigenous Two-Spirit communities in the city throughout the year.
“All of these communities still have issues outside of Pride month and we still need to recognize that and we need to provide resources and funding for that,” he says.
The week will culminate in Kingston’s own Pride parade on June 18.
The Pride parade route starts at 11 a.m. from Clergy Street and continues down Princess Street before turning towards Confederation Basin at Ontario Street.
